Together with the adjacent city hall, the Chamber of Commerce is the oldest surviving classical building ensemble in Hamburg. To allow for a more intensive use, the brief for the 2003 design competition anticipated adding new floor levels within the existing Börsenhalle, or stock exchange hall, and called for a design that would respect the fabric of the historic building.
In consideration of both the structural condition of the listed stock exchange hall and the required preservation of its historical features, a new five-story structure was inserted inside: a house within a house, offering approximately 1,000sq.m of space for new uses. Designed as a contemporary interpretation of the historic fabric, this new structure echoes the building’s long-standing role as a central meeting place for Hamburg’s business communities.
The new structure occupies only a small part of the hall, preserving its spacious character. A business start-up center, along with consultation, exhibition, club, and meeting rooms, is organized into a series of staggered volumes intersected by a grid of steel posts. The top floor opens onto a generous roof terrace, offering views of Hamburg through a band of arched clerestory windows.
- Client
- Handelskammer Hamburg
- Architects
- Behnisch Architekturbüro, Behnisch & Partner
- Address
Adolphsplatz 1
20457 Hamburg
Germany- Gross Area
1.000 qm / 10,760 sq.ft
- Competition
2003, 1st prize, Behnisch & Partner
- Photography
Hans Jürgen Landes
- Awards
2007 Architectural Lighting Award, Commendable Achievement
2008 Building of the year, award presented by the Architekten- und Ingenieurverein Hamburg e.V. (Association of architects and engineers)
2008 Chicago Athenaeum International Architecture Award
2008 Merit Award for Interior Architecture presented by the AIA California Council (AIACC)
2008 BDA Hamburg Architekturpreis – 3rd prize
2008 IIDA’s Best of Competition
2008 Winner of the 35th Annual Interior Design Competition organized by the IIDA - International Interior Design Association
2012 WAN Adaptive re-use Awards, shortlist- Downloads
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The House within a House is a sculptural composition of layered planes, where lightness, immateriality, and reflection contrast deliberately with the solid, elaborate walls of the historic hall. It unfolds as a series of seemingly floating planes, offsetting the mass of the original stone architecture. Soft vaulted forms are juxtaposed with the sharp, graphic lines of luminous, transparent, and reflective materials—resembling a multifaceted jewel that captures and refracts light. A single flight of stairs serves the first three levels, while smaller internal stairs lead to the upper two. The second level is linked by a bridge to the Albert Schäfer Auditorium in the existing building. A custom-designed LED system enhances the light, free-floating quality of the extension, making the House within a House the world’s first structure entirely illuminated by LED lighting.
